y bridge bulletin j august 2017 - abfevents.com.au · australian youth bridge bulletin –june...
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P a g e | 1
A U S T R A L I A N Y O U T H B R I D G E B U L L E T I N J U N E – A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
Bulletin Editor: Andy Hung ISSUE 26
L to R: David Wiltshire, Max Henbest, Jamie Thompson, Shane Harrison
Congratulations to Max Henbest, David Wiltshire, Shane Harrison, and Jamie Thompson for winning the 2017 Victor Champion Cup! Their one (and only) medium loss to the number one seeds (team Markey) came at an unfortunate time on the third last round, but they managed to secure the first place after a big finish. Congrats!
Australia had sent two youth teams to South Korea to participate in the APBF Junior and Girls Teams Championships. Although neither team came home with a medal, they were both in contention throughout. The Juniors came 5th, and the Girls came 4th. Read more about it on page 4.
SEP OCT NZ National Congress Hamilton
30 - 7 OCT OCT Spring
Nationals Sydney 18 - 22 NOV NOV 2018 Open
Playoff Canberra 12 - 16
JAN JAN 50th Youth Week Canberra
6 - 12 JAN JAN Summer
Festival Canberra 10 - 21 FEB FEB Commonwealth
Nations** Gold Coast 14 - 18 **ABF is sending one youth team.
Check page 11 for more info **
Pre-Alerts!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Checkback (Results). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2017 Youth APBF By Liam Milne. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Suit Combinations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 State Associations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
A U S T R A L I A N Y O U T H B R I D G E B U L L E T I N J U N E – A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
2017 APBF YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS 28 MAY – 7 JUN, 2017 (Seoul)
Junior Teams
Place Team 1ST CHINA 2ND SINGAPORE 3RD CHINESE TAIPEI 4TH CHINA HONG KONG
5TH AUSTRALIA: Charles McMahon, John McMahon, Jamie Thompson, Matthew Smith, Nico Ranson, Christopher Rhodes
W
Girls Teams
Place Team 1ST CHINA 2ND INDONESIA 3RD CHINA HONG KONG
4TH AUSTRALIA: Renee Cooper, Francesca McGrath, Kirstyn Fuller, Ailsa Peacock, Lakshmi Sunderasan
W
APBF Swiss Pairs
Place Pair 1ST Jamie Thompson – Matthew Smith
2017 VCC
Open Teams
Place Team 1ST
Maxim Henbest, David Wiltshire, Shane Harrison, Jamie Thompson
2ND Nathan Van Jole, Justin Williams, Paul Gosney, Johnno Newman
For more details, please visit the Championship website here.
For more details, please visit the Championship website here.
Checkback (Results) P a g e | 2
A U S T R A L I A N Y O U T H B R I D G E B U L L E T I N J U N E – A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
2017 ANC YOUTH TEAMS 25 JUN – 7 JUL, 2016 (Brisbane, QLD)
Youth Teams
Place State VPs Team Members
1ST NSW 272 IMPs (Finals)
Charles Mcmahon - John Mcmahon - Edmond Lee -Ramanan Rajkumar - Nico Ranson - Matt Smith
2ND WA 68 IMPs (Finals)
Renee Cooper - Francesca Mcgrath - Kirstyn Fuller - Jack O'reilly - Rebecca O'reilly - Megan O'reilly
3RD ACT 700.6 Shannon Bowen - Maximilian Mullamphy - Zachary Neulinger - Andrew Spooner - Daryl Whitfield
4TH QLD 700.5 Andrew Gosney - Jack Luke-Paredi - Darren Brake - Ben Leung - Angus Gray - Jasmine Skeate
5TH SA 475.2 George Bartley - Ben Curtis - Jarvis Dunsford - David Gue - Jack Mcdonald - Jamie Simpson
6TH VIC 360.6 Victoria Thompson – Liam and Aiden Robertson - Brian Callaghan - Jamie Thompson Finn Rennie
Open Butler Pairs
Place Pair 1ST Peter Hollands – Michael Ware 2ND Renee Cooper – George Smolanko
2017 Coffs Coast Gold Congress
Open Swiss Pairs
Place Team 1ST Johnno Newman – Paul Gosney
For more details, please visit the tournament website here.
For more details, please visit the Championship website here.
Checkback (Results) P a g e | 3
A U S T R A L I A N Y O U T H B R I D G E B U L L E T I N J U N E – A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
2017 APBF CHAMPIONSHIPS BY LIAM MILNE, SYDNEY
(This article are snippets of the Team reports by Liam during the championships)
2017 Australian Junior Team: John Newman (NPC), Liam Milne (Coach), Nico Ranson, Chris Rhodes, Matt Smith, Jamie Thompson, John McMahon, Charles McMahon
The Australian U25 Juniors Johnno Newman (NPC): To me, Johnno seems to just have come out of nowhere a few years ago. One of the keenest 'young' players on the Australian scene (although the oldest member of this team!), Johnno has been making runs at many of the biggest events recently. He is the perfect fit for this team, with infectious enthusiasm to go with solid decision making abilities. Johnno will be calling the shots for the team in Seoul. Liam Milne (Coach): Having given the NPC role a go last year in the World Juniors in Italy, this year I am here as the official Coach of both the Juniors and Girls teams. I've represented both NZ and Australia (the latter at Open level) and am here to bring a little bit of experience to these teams. As well as helping with opponents' systems and answering bridge questions, I'm here to give the captains and players a bit of support at key moments and help with some of the leadership decisions. Nico Ranson: On his days off, Nico likes to get out amongst it - him and Chris climbed Bukhansan Mountain just out of Seoul as warmup for the opening ceremony tonight. As well as being a student of the game of bridge, Nico is a student of Physics in Sydney. Chris Rhodes: Like Nico, Chris is a student at the University of Sydney. Chris and Nico are currently undefeated in international matches: they were part of the triumphant team at the Australia versus New Zealand test match last year in Hamilton. Matt Smith: Perhaps the most 'bridge obsessed' of the team. At last count, Matt has read virtually every bridge book ever written. Matt's system notes are a perpetually unfinished masterpiece. A perfectionist at heart, Matt is always trying to get Jamie to play 'something new'. Luckily for the team, Jamie usually says no. Jamie Thompson: the most experienced player on our Junior team, Jamie is the only one of the boys to have represented Australia internationally before. Jamie is affectionately known as "Guns" for his muscular arms - probably developed from picking up thousands of bridge hands out of boards. Having won a gold medal in the U21 category in 2011, Jamie will be hoping to find a U26 gold medal waiting for him at the end of this event. John McMahon: one of the 'boys from Wagga', John's chiselled features make him a firm favourite for the 'heartthrob of the team' award (his brother Charles would argue the point). Hopefully his strong chin will distract a few of the opponents at the table during the triple round robin in Seoul. Charles McMahon: the other half of the McMahon brother duo. The tinkerer of the partnership, Charles has a keen eye for good system. When Charles isn't playing bridge, he's letting you back into your house - he's a locksmith by trade. Hopefully he can unlock some of the secrets of the game this event.
2017 PABF Championships (Pages 4-10) P a g e | 4
A U S T R A L I A N Y O U T H B R I D G E B U L L E T I N J U N E – A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
2017 Australian Girls Team. L-R: Ailsa Peacock, Kirsty Fuller, Francesca McGrath, Christy Geromboux (NPC), Liam Milne (Coach), Renee Cooper, Lakshmi Sunderasan
The Australian U25 Girls Christy Geromboux (NPC): Hailing from Canberra, Christy is the brains of the operation. She will have an easy job managing this group of young ladies, however! As well as picking the lineups for each match, Christy is the ABF representative on site and will be doing everything she can to help the Girls team achieve their goals.
Ailsa Peacock: A first time Australian representative, Ailsa originally hails from Sydney, went to Perth, and is back in Sydney these days (when she's not overseas playing bridge!). A voracious reader, Ailsa was once a croupier at the Star casino in Sydney. These days, she prefers to use her skills with cards playing bridge.
Lakshmi Sunderasan: Along with Ailsa, Lakshmi was part of the winning NSW Interstate Youth Team last year. A keen tennis player, Lakshmi is in her eighth (!) year of study to become a doctor. Recently, Lakshmi had a lengthy placement in Grafton, but thankfully for Sydney's bridge scene, she is back in the big smoke.
Kirsty Fuller: With Ailsa and Lakshmi, Kirsty is the third side of a 'triangle' (three-way partnership) as well as the cousin of Renee (below). Originally a Western Australian, Kirsty lived and played in Manchester for some time. She was part of the silver medallist Girls team last year in the World Championships.
Renee Cooper: A student of mathematics and engineering, Renee played every board at last year's World Championship for the Girls. She also earned her first cap for the Australian Women's Team in 2016, qualifying for the round of 16 in the World Bridge Games. If you hear someone saying "matey" at a bridge tournament, it is odds-on to be this young gun from Perth.
Cesca McGrath: One of the babies of the Seoul team, Cesca was also on the Girls team in Italy last year. When she's not practicing her 2/1 system with Renee, Cesca enjoys karoake - a particular favourite of hers is the Pussycat Dolls.
2017 PABF Championships (Pages 4-10) P a g e | 5
A U S T R A L I A N Y O U T H B R I D G E B U L L E T I N J U N E – A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
Here are some memorable hands from the tournament.
My favourite hand from the third day was this one from the first match.
Although East-West have 25 points, this is North-South's hand. In 4 , there are just 3 aces to lose. The McMahon brothers for the Junior team duly bid and made 4 for +620.
In the other room, Matt Smith as East managed to buy it in 3NT. There was a spade lead, but Matt somehow managed to get out for just one down, -50 and 11 IMPs.
It's usually good when your team bids game in both rooms, and this was one of the rare occasions that one of the contracts was 3NT.
Having said that, the Girls did even better! Ailsa Peacock and Lakshmi Sunderasan played 4 doubled, which duly rolled in for +790.
In the other room, Renee Cooper as East played 3NT. South led a heart, and Renee ducked. South continued with another heart! Now Renee could win the second heart and knock out the Ace of clubs. North had no more hearts, so Renee had the rest of the tricks. +660 to go with +790 from the other room was a double game swing and a massive 16 IMPs for the Australian Girls.
Here’s a hand from the fourth day:
North is the dealer, both sides vulnerable. We saw a huge range of scores across all of the matches, with lots of IMPs flying around.
In the Australian Open match, the board was flat, both sides bidding and making 6 for +1460. In the NZ Open match, it was also flat: 6 doubled making an overtrick, good for +1860!
The best result on this hand from our youth teams was 5 X played by Matt Smith and Jamie Thompson, making a quiet +1150.
You can score +1390 two ways on this hand: bid and make 6 with an overtrick, or get
doubled in 4 , making three overtricks! Both scores occurred at least once.
Pride of place goes to the +2470s, however. There are also two ways of writing down that juicy number. The Thai Open team bid and made 7 doubled, the simple way to get 2470. The Chinese Taipei Ladies and the Chinese Juniors found the other way to get 2470: 6 redoubled, making an overtrick! That would feel good to put into the scorebook.
The following article is a match report from Bulletin 8:
9 4 3 5 4 10 7 6 3 2 A8 3
A7 7 2 K 9 8 J10 9642
J 6 A9 8 6 AQ J 4 K Q 7
N W E
S
K Q 10 8 5 2 KQ J 10 3 5 5
Q 9 8 5 3 - J 9 3 Q 10 8 6 5
7 2 Q 10 9 8 5 7 J 9 7 4 3
6 4 AK7632 Q 6 AK 2
N W E
S
A K J 10 J 4 AK10 8542 -
2017 PABF Championships (Pages 4-10) P a g e | 6
APBF Championship 2017 Daily Bulletin 8
The Play Day 6 Brian Senior
Indonesia v Australia (Juniors 2.9)
This is our first look at the Juniors competition.
Indonesia and Australia lay fourth and sixth, close
to the middle of the field, going into the last
match in their second round robin – there is still
one more round robin to come.
Board 1
North Deals
None Vul
A K Q J 9 8 6
—
10 4
K 8 6 4
10 3
9 8 7 3
9 8 6 2
10 9 2
2
K 10 6 4 2
A Q 7 5 3
Q J
7 5 4
A Q J 5
K J
A 7 5 3
N
W E
S
West North East South
Smith Agrario Thompson Priambodo
1 2 4
5 5 Dble All pass
West North East South
Akbar Ranson Hasyimi Rhodes
1 2 3
4 4 5 Dble
Pass 5 All pass
For Indonesia, Agrario opened 1♠ and Thompson
made a two-suited overcall. Facing a Precision, so
limited, 1♠ opening, Priambodo simply raised to
4♠, giving up on any thought of slam, and now
Smith took his life into his hands with a 5♥ bid on
a balanced hand with no high cards. Double
dummy, E/W can be held to five tricks in a heart
contract, which could have been –1400. Not
surprisingly, Agrario took the push to 5♠ – he had
huge extra playing potential – and now
Thompson, expecting that his partner would have
something for the 5♥ bid, doubled. A shame
nobody redoubled – I love the sight of other
people's blood – but 5♠ doubled on a low heart
lead made an overtrick and +750 was not a bad
start to the match from Agrario's perspective.
In the other room Hasyimi made a simple 2♥
overcall and that left room for Rhodes to show a
constructive three-card spade raise. Akbar too was
willing to get involved with the West cards – he
only offered 1100 – but here N/S had shown more
strength, having doubled 5♥, so Hasyimi had no
reason to double the final contract. He too led a
heart so there were again 12 tricks but this time
for only +480 so 7 IMPs to Indonesia.
Board 4
West Deals
Both Vul
10 3 2
5 2
A Q 10 5 4
K 8 5
A K Q J 5
Q J 8 4
J 3
Q 9
8 7
A K 9 6 3
6 2
10 6 4 3
9 6 4
10 7
K 9 8 7
A J 7 2
N
W E
S
West North East South
Smith Agrario Thompson Priambodo
1 Pass 1 NT Pass
2 Pass 4 All pass
West North East South
Akbar Ranson Hasyimi Rhodes
1 1 Dble 2
Pass Pass 2 Pass
3 Pass 3 NT Pass
4 All pass
Smith's natural opening was too high for Agrario
to fancy an overcall so the defence knew only that
declarer was at least five-four in the majors.
Having said which, North should be very
concerned about his spade holding, which
suggests that the defence needs to get its tricks
quickly before they disappear on the spades.
Hence, Agrario's trump lead looks wrong and it
duly permitted Smith to get home with 11 tricks
for +650. I prefer a club lead.
Akbar opened a strong club and Hasyimi's
double showed usually a semi-positive. The heart
fit was found but the defence knew enough to find
the right lead – a diamond – and Ranson won the
ace and switched to a low club. Rhodes in turn
won that and cashed the ♦K before returning a
club to the king for one down and –100; 13 IMPs
to Australia.
APBF Championship 2017 Daily Bulletin 8
Board 5
North Deals
N-S Vul
7
K 10 8 5 4 2
8 4
J 5 3 2
K J 9 5
J 6 3
K 10 6
A 7 6
A 8 6 2
A Q 9 7
5
K Q 10 4
Q 10 4 3
—
A Q J 9 7 3 2
9 8
N
W E
S
West North East South
Smith Agrario Thompson Priambodo
2 Pass Pass
Dble Pass Pass 3
Dble All pass
West North East South
Akbar Ranson Hasyimi Rhodes
Pass 2 4
Dble Pass 4 Pass
4 Pass 4 NT Pass
5 Pass 5 All pass
Agrario opened with a weak two bid and that went
round to Smith, who doubled for take-out. At this
vulnerability it was routine for East to leave it in
and play for a penalty and now Priambodo
rescued his side into the long and strong
diamonds. Smith doubled again, this time for
penalty, and that was that.
Smith led the jack of hearts to the king and ruff
and Priambodo led the ten of spades from hand.
Smith left that to his partner to win with the ace so
the trump play could come from the correct hand
for the defence. Priambodo rose with the ace on
the trump lead, ruffed a spade and ruffed a heart
back to hand. He made six trump tricks plus the
ruff so was down two for –500, a lot better than
would have been the case in 2♥ doubled.
Ranson did not open the North hand, a wise
decision vulnerable against not, so Hasyimi got to
open a system bid, 2♦ to show the three-suiter
with short diamonds, 11-15 HCP. Rhodes pre-
empted with 4♦, offering a double dummy 1100
but putting his opponents under pressure. Of
course, Akbar's double was not taken as being for
penalty, though surely it should be when partner
has defined his hand so well already? The
Indonesians scrambled into 4♠ then Hasyimi
asked for key cards, or at least it is hard to see
what else he could be doing, though the response
puts that in some doubt. He signed off in 5♠ now.
Ranson led the seven of spades which, while
understandable – theory suggests that it is often
right to lead trumps against three-suited hands –
helped declarer by picking up the ♠Q in the hand
where it was not expected to be after the pre-
emptive overcall. Akbar won the queen with the
king and cashed the ♠J. On seeing the four-one
split he led a club to the king followed by a
second club to the ace then took the finesse of the
♣10 – by now South's distribution was almost
certainly 4-0-7-2. Rhodes ruffed and cashed the
ace of diamonds then returned his remaining
trump. Akbar won, threw a heart on the queen of
clubs, and led the last spade to his hand. It does
seem that this line leaves declarer with a loser at
the end so, given the BBO operators' deficiencies
on previous occasions, I find it hard to accept this
story, given that declarer is credited with 11 tricks
for +450 and 2 IMPs to Australia.
Board 7
South Deals
Both Vul
A J 7 4 3
10 2
10 3
A J 4 3
2
K J 9 8 7 6
K J 2
9 7 2
K 10 9 6
A
Q 8 7 6 4
K Q 8
Q 8 5
Q 5 4 3
A 9 5
10 6 5
N
W E
S
West North East South
Smith Agrario Thompson Priambodo
Pass
Pass 1 1 NT 2
4 Pass 4 All pass
West North East South
Akbar Ranson Hasyimi Rhodes
Pass
2 All pass
Akbar opened a normal weak two bid and played
there. Ranson led the ten of diamonds, Rhodes
encouraging with the nine and Akbar winning the
king. Akbar led a spade up, Ranson winning the
ace and playing a second diamond. Rhodes won
the ace and gave him his ruff and Ranson got out
with a spade. Akbar won the king, pitching a club
from hand, cashed the ♥A and ruffed a spade.
After cashing the ♥K, he played a club up and had
eight tricks for +110.
Smith didn't seem to like the West hand for
some reason. Certainly, I would open it 2♥ every
APBF Championship 2017 Daily Bulletin 8
day of the week. We expect randomness from
juniors, not super-conservatism, so come on boys!
Agrario opened the North hand in third seat and
Thompson couldn't bear to pass his 14-count so
overcalled a distorted 1NT. That was enough for
Smith to transfer to 4♥ and that ended the auction.
Priambodo led ace and another diamond, breaking
the communications for the ruff. However, there
was still one trick to be lost in each suit so the
contract was down one for –100 and 5 IMPs to
Indonesia.
Board 8
West Deals
None Vul
10 7 6 3
8 7 4 2
Q 3
6 5 3
A 5 2
A 6
A 8 6 4 2
J 10 2
Q 9 8 4
J 9 5
K 10 9 7
A 9
K J
K Q 10 3
J 5
K Q 8 7 4
N
W E
S
West North East South
Smith Agrario Thompson Priambodo
1 Pass 1 1 N
Pass Pass Dble All pass
West North East South
Akbar Ranson Hasyimi Rhodes
1 Pass 1 Dble
Redble 2 2 All pass
Smith opened the West hand with 1♣, clubs or
balanced, and Thompson made a transfer response
showing spades. For the second deal running we
saw an ugly 1NT overcall and this one too got
punished, though in a rather different fashion to
the previous deal. When 1NT came back to
Thompson he had just enough to make a penalty
double and no-one saw fit to run so that was the
final contract.
Smith led a diamond and Priambodo put up the
queen – this is a questionable play as it guarantees
that East will play his honour, though no doubt
Priambodo will argue that he would have a
dummy entry if west had underled the ace and
king. Play low, and a sleepy East may play the
nine or ten, giving declarer an undeserved trick.
Five rounds of diamonds did nothing to improve
declarer's remaining holdings and Smith next
switched to ace and another spade to the king.
Declarer played the king of hearts so Smith won
and played a third spade through to the nine.
Thompson cashed the ♠Q then played the ♥J to
the now bare queen, and there was one club trick
for each side at the end; down four for –800.
Akbar opened a Precision 1♦ and Hasyimi
responded 1♠. With five-four in the unbid suits,
there was much less temptation for Rhodes to
make a poor overcall and he instead doubled for
take-out. Akbar redoubled to show three-card
spade support and Hasyimi competed to 2♠ over
Ranson's 2♥.
Rhodes led the king of hearts against 2♠.
Hasyimi won the ace and returned a heart to the
nine and ten, and ruffed the heart continuation.
Next he played a club to the nine and queen and
Rhodes led the jack of diamonds, which Hasyimi
won in hand with the king. He now got the
diamond position wrong by treating the jack as a
falsecard, running the ♦9 to North's queen. Back
came a club to the now bare ace. Hasyimi played
ace and another spade to the nine and king but had
lost trump control and could only come to two
more trump tricks for down one; –50 and 13 IMPs
to Australia.
Board 14
East Deals
None Vul
8 7 6 5
J
10 9 3
A 8 6 5 4
A Q
9 8 7 6 2
7 6 5
K 10 7
K 10 4 3
K 10 5 4 3
A 8 4 2
—
J 9 2
A Q
K Q J
Q J 9 3 2
N
W E
S
West North East South
Smith Agrario Thompson Priambodo
1 1 NT
Dble Redble Pass 2
3 Pass 4 All pass
West North East South
Akbar Ranson Hasyimi Rhodes
1 1 NT
3 All pass
Both Easts opened the shapely ten-count and both
Souths made the normal 1NT overcall. Now
Akbar raised to 3♥ and that, not being the
strongest way he could have got to this level, did
not excite Hasyimi sufficiently for him to go on to
game.
Smith, by contrast, started by doubling 1NT.
Agrario started a rescue sequence and Priambodo
APBF Championship 2017 Daily Bulletin 8
bid 2♣ as requested. Now Smith jumped to 3♥ but
this combination surely showed a stronger hand
than had Akbar's. Thompson certainly saw it that
way and went on to game.
Both Souths led the king of diamonds and both
declarers played in exactly the same fashion – ace
of diamonds, ace and queen of spades, club ruff,
king then ten of spades fro two diamond pitches
from the dummy. There were 11 tricks at both
tables but there was a difference, of course – +200
for Hasyimi but +450 for Thompson and 6 IMPs
to Australia.
The Australians also had the better of the
minor swings and those helped them to run out
winners by 45-12 IMPs, 17.49-2.51 VPs, moving
them up to fourth in the rankings, while Indonesia
slipped to fifth.
Call for nominations for the Youth Team to the Commonwealth Nations
Bridge ChampionshipsThe Commonwealth Nations Bridge Championships will be held from 14 – 18 February 2018 at the Gold Coast. The ABF has agreed that a six-person youth team will be one of the two contending Australian teams for this event.
Eligibility: Open to all Male and Female Under 25 players who are born on or after 1 January 1993 and before 1 January 2000.
Selection: Will follow the procedure as outlined in the policy for non-target events.
This event is seen as an important part of the overall preparation for the World Youth Bridge Team Championships in China in 2018 and nominating pairs who are selected for this event will be expected to trial in those partnerships in the 2018 Youth Butler unless exceptional circumstances arise.
Funding: A subsidy of $1800 per team, plus entry fees will be provided.
Nominations which should include a summary of recent results from National events should be sent by email to Jane Rasmussen <[email protected]>. The closing date for nominations will be 20 October 2017, and the team will be announced on 15 November 2017.
A U S T R A L I A N Y O U T H B R I D G E B U L L E T I N J U N E – A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
FREE ROBOTS For JUNIORS!
BBO’s generous offer of FREE leasing of GIB Robots on BBO is still available!
If you are an Australian youth player, and under 26 years of age (or 26 that year), simply send in your name, date of birth, and your BBO I.D. to Dave Thompson at [email protected].
FOR THE IMPROVING PLAYER [DECLARER PLAY]
S/All A 8 5 7 6 4 A J 7 5 A 5 3
Q
9 3 A K 9 5 3 4 K Q 8 4 2
South to make 4 (IMPs)
Lead is Q. Say you win A and cash AK. Hearts are 1(West)-4(East).
Solution on Page 13
Sat 6th to Fri 12th Jan 2018
As the Australian Youth Bridge Week turns 50, rumour has it that this one will be a special one with lots of hidden surprises. First one is, Matthew McManus will be joining us! More to come.
♦ Lots of Bridge ♦ Lots of Fun and Games ♦ Free BBQ on Friday afternoon open to all ♦ Book prizes generously donated by Paul Lavings
Interesting Bridge Problems
Johnno Newman is giving out free bridge problems from real life play! If
you would like to try these out, sign up over at http://eepurl.com/ctNI5n
Peter Hollands Live Bridge Stream
Live bridge streaming sessions (All sessions will run most weeks)
AEDT Time (Melbourne) Monday 2.00 - 5.00 PM + 8-10PM Tuesday 3.00 - 6.00 PM Thursday 11.00 AM -12.00 PM (Lesson) + 1-3PM (Beginners) Saturday (occasional) 11AM-1PM
To watch these free live sessions: https://www.twitch.tv/peterhollands
P a g e | 1 1
Bathurst & District Bridge Club Invites you to the 3rd
Central West Novice Bridge Tournament
For players with 50 MPs or less at 30 June 2017 Divisions: 0-10.00 MPs; 10.01-30.00 MPs; 30.01- 50.00 MPs
A weekend of: • Bridge
• Good food• Great company
• Friendly competition
Conducted under the auspices of the NSWBA RED master points approved by ABF at level B4
Directed by Ed Barnes
28 & 29 October 2017 Programme
Saturday: Pairs Sunday: Swiss Teams
Contact Details: • Email Karin Le Roux: [email protected]
o mob: 0428 859 898• enter via NSWBA website on line entries for congresses
**50% discount for Youth Players 25 years or under**
**50% discount for Youth Players 25 years or under**
A U S T R A L I A N Y O U T H B R I D G E B U L L E T I N J U N E – A U G U S T 2 0 1 7
THIS ISSUE FOR NEXT ISSUE (Assume unlimited entries) (Assume unlimited entries)
K 10 9 One option is to play small to the king (on the second round probably in case East has a singleton ace) to play West for the ace. An even better play would be to take two finesses, small to the 9 followed by small to the 10. You might think that when you play small to the 9, and assuming it loses to either the queen or the jack, then playing small to the 10 or K is a 50-50 guess. Actually, this is a typical Restricted Choice problem. If East had both the queen and the jack, he would have a choice of plays. If East had AJ or AQ, he would have been forced to play the queen or the jack.
K 10 9
Target: 1 trick
Target: 1 trick
4 3 2 4 3 2
A T 9
Target: 2 tricks
Q 3 2
BRIDGE TRIVIA!
xxx
A T 9 Play low from hand towards dummy’s king. Assuming this wins, lead low from dummy to your jack.
Target: 2 tricks
Q 3 2
FOR THE IMPROVING PLAYER [DECLARER PLAY] SOLUTION
(Problem on page 11)
S/All ♠ A 8 5 ♥ 7 6 4 ♦ A J 7 5
♣ A 5 3
Q
♠ 9 3 ♥ A K 9 5 3 ♦ 4♣ K Q 8 4 2
South to make 4 (IMPs) Opening lead is Q. Say you win A and cash
AK. Hearts are 1(West)-4(East).
With normal breaks, this game would roll home. But when West shows out on the second round of hearts, the contract now hinges on avoiding a club loser. This is easy if East has two, three, or four clubs (you can ruff one in dummy), but you can also succeed if East has a singleton club provided you do not let him ruff one of your club honours. This is accomplished by winning with the A first, then leading towards the king, as well as the queen. At trick 4, play a club to dummy’s ace then a club towards your hand. If East ruffs, play a low club and the rest of your clubs are good. If East discards instead, win with the K, then a diamond to the ace and lead another club. Again, if East ruffs, play low. If he discards, win the queen and now play a fourth club ruffing it in dummy (to set up the clubs). Whether East overruffs or not, your troubles are over. The defence gets two hearts and a spade.
There are two options, and they are fairly close. First one is to run the queen, followed by playing small to the 10. This will pick up any time that the honours are split. The second option is to play small to the 9 first, and later run the queen. Again, this willpick up the suit any time that the honorus are split, but it has the added advantage if the suit splits 0-7 (!), you can play the ace on the first round instead!
SUIT COMBINATIONS
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